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Inside the world’s first acoustically perfect concert hall

How the Elbphilharmonie auditorium in Germany is making (sound) waves

January 26, 2017 | Text Jessica Hunkin Photo Michael Zapf

The metallic, wave-like facade of the Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg, Germany is certainly a sight to behold. But in the case of this $843 million building, it’s what’s inside that’s really remarkable.

The central auditorium of this hall is a world first, having been meticulously engineered to reach acoustic perfection. According to Wired.com, ‘the auditorium is a product of parametric design, a process by which designers use algorithms to develop an object’s form’. Swiss architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron began working on the space 13 years ago and collaborated with One to One studio founder Benjamin Koren and famed acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota to come up with its impressive coral reef-like structure. The interior consists of 10 000 unique acoustic panels, which together contain a total of 1 million ‘cells’ designed to shape sound.

The interlocking, off-white panels produce a dramatic visual effect, enhanced by the 1 000 hand-blown glass light bulbs that dot the auditorium. It must feel rather surreal to enter this futuristic space, which at capacity seats 2 150 people. See a few pictures below and find the full story here.